AirForces Monthly – September 2019

http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #378 September 2019 // 91

and scenarios and employ their respective

aircraft in realistic, complex tactical situations,

with a focus on mixed operations.

Armée de l’Air (French Air Force) aircraft

involved in the latest manoeuvres – Garuda

VI – included the Rafale, Alpha Jet, Mirage

2000-5F/D, C-135FR, E-3F, C-130 and

CN235. The host for the exercise was the

Escadron de Chasse (EC) 2/30 ‘Normandie-

Niemen’, part of the 30e Escadre de Chasse

(30th Fighter Wing), flying the Rafale.

IAF squadrons

The Indian Air Force (IAF) brought four

Su-30MKIs, one Il-78MKI tanker and two C-17A

transports to France.

The Indian Flankers

came from No

24 Squadron

‘Hunting Hawks’

at Bareilly Air

Force Station (AFS) and the Il-78 belonged to

No 78 Squadron ‘Battle Cry’ at Agra AFS.

The Indian detachment left India on

June 26, with intermediate stops in the

United Arab Emirates and in Egypt. It

touched down at Mont-de-Marsan two

days later and was welcomed by base

commander Colonel Cédric Gaudillière.

The exercise concluded on July 12 and the

IAF departed for India on the 15th. The Indian

contingent comprised around 110 personnel.

Group Captain Elvis Clinton Rodrigues,

callsign ‘Rods’, is the commanding officer

of the ‘Hunting Hawks’. He has 3,000 flying

hours, about 1,000 of which are on the Sukhoi.

He told AFM: “It was a great

experience and more

than challenging. It

was of considerable

learning value for

us, primarily

he latest Garuda was organised at

Base Aérienne 118 ‘Colonel Rozanoff’

at Mont-de-Marsan in southwest

France between July 1-12. This training is

an extension of France’s wider efforts to

build relationships in the Indo-Pacific region.

It aims to improve levels of interoperability

between French and Indian aircrews in both

air defence and ground-attack missions.

Strategic co-operation between France

and India dates back to 1951, with a first

agreement involving the Indian and French

atomic energy commissions, and, ever since,

has developed and expanded in scope.

French President Jacques Chirac and India’s

Prime Minister I K Gujral signed a strategic

partnership in January 1998 which was then

launched during Prime Minister A B Vajpayee’s

visit to Paris in September the same year.

During Garuda, French and Indian crews

come together to prepare their missions

T

in France

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